


Heart of the Sea

by Fleurs_et_Cuir



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Titanic Fusion, F/F, Éposette - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-20
Updated: 2017-07-20
Packaged: 2018-12-04 10:29:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11553315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fleurs_et_Cuir/pseuds/Fleurs_et_Cuir
Summary: aka the Titanic au no one asked for~On April 10th, 1912, Cosette Tholomyes and Eponine and Azelma Thenardier boarded the Titanic set for America. They were on completely different paths, as polar as the obits of the sun and the moon. And yet, like an eclipse, they intertwined. Cosette and Eponine, together, would become part of a story marked in history, a story that would live on forever.





	Heart of the Sea

It was the ship of dreams, they said. Fifty-two thousand tons of steel, five cargo rooms, four chimneys. It was the largest ship of its day, and the most beautiful. For anyone lucky enough to witness the RMS Titanic, it  _ was  _ the ship of dreams. But to one young, rich girl from London, it was nothing but a slave ship, taking her to America in chains.

Euphrasie Tholomyes was a small creature of barely seventeen years old, with dark curly hair and dazzling blue eyes that hid overwhelming sadness. She was the only child of the late Felix Tholomyes, a giant in the steel industry, and was being carted away to New York to marry another young, wealthy man to tie their families together. It was a fixed arrangement, and a smart one at that. Even Euphrasie agreed that the match made perfect sense, but even still she did not believe in it. She could never love Caledon Hockley.

The Hockley family was known, besides for being rich, as a fate changer. Anyone who simply blinked at the family found themselves overflowing with riches and fame. They spent the money they raked in almost as soon as they made it, and posed with their fine things like sculptures amongst gardens. Furs, mahogany, diamonds- nothing was too much for the Hockleys. This motto carried onto the youngest son, Caledon, and he spoiled himself and his wife-to-be tremendously. Which is, to say, what led Euphrasie to the Titanic.

 

Stepping out of the carriage, the sound of shrieking crowds filled the air, along with seagulls cawing, horns honking, and crates scraping along the ground. It was a burdening amount of commotion, all with the beautiful Titanic as a backdrop.

“Here we are, Euphrasie.” Caledon grinned. “The best ship ever made.”

Euphrasie wrinkled her nose. “It’s quite loud here, isn’t it?”

Caledon rolled his eyes. “My god. Mary it seems your daughter is impossible to please!”

A young woman with fiery red hair stepped out of the carriage as well, smiling politely at Caledon. “Well, it’s just the way us Tholomyes women are. You should know this by now, especially of my daughter.”

Mary Tholomyes was everything that Euphrasie was not. She lived for the finer things in life and draped herself in luxury. Brand was everything, name was everything. To Mary, nothing could possibly be better than the life of the upper class. She donned the role of a wealthy man’s wife with a bright smile and a gracious cursty.

Caledon nodded. “You’re right. I should have known by now that Euphrasie is a woman with higher needs.”

“Cal,” Euphrasie said as she took the man’s arm and walked with him. “I believe it’s appropriate for you to call me Cosette, seeing as how we are going to be married in a few weeks.”

He scoffed. “Nonsense. Euphrasie is a beautiful name, your god given name. To call you by anything else would be an insult.”

“Yes.” Cosette sighed, looking up at the ship. “I suppose it would be.”

Then there they went, a rich man and his fiancee, to board a ship to their new lives.

 

***

 

“Please tell me you’ve got a good hand.” Azelma whispered to Eponine.

“Don’t worry,” her sister replied. “Trust me.”

Eponine and Azelma Thenardier sat in a dingy pub, the both of them holding worn out cards in their hands and facing a pair of burly men with stone cold looks on their faces. The game was poker, and the prize was freedom. The tallest of the two, when stakes got high, had bet their two tickets for the Titanic. Needless to say, there was tension at the table for who would win the ultimate prize. As for the Thenardier sisters, they had bet nearly all of their remaining money, and the last bit of gold they carried with them. For both the parties, it was all or nothing.

“Alright it’s time. Put them down.” The shorter man said uneasily.

Azelma laid her hand on the table- an 8, a 4, a 5, and a king. A high card, not the best, but not the worst. So far so good.

The shorter man laid his hand down. Nothing of importance. Now it was clear why he was uneasy.

“Now you, Sven.” Eponine demanded.

The taller man, Sven, flashed the two girls a wide smile and laid down his hand. Three of a kind. Confidence radiated from him.

“Oh no. I’m so sorry Azelma.” Eponine said sympathetically to her younger sister. “I am so sorry...that I didn’t give you enough time to pack. Because-” she slammed her hand on the table. “We’re going to America! Full house, baby!”

The two girls stood shouting and hugged each other in unspeakable joy. They were going to America. They were going on the Titanic.

“You idiot!” The short man yelled at Sven and lunged at him, the two wresting on the floor of the pub.

“Well thanks for the game, boys, but I think me and my sister have a fancy boat to catch.” Azelma grinned linking arms with Eponine.

A voice from behind them laughed. “Like they’re going to let two underage girls board the Titanic alone.” The man had a point. Azelma was only 15, Eponine barely 18, and they looked like it, even younger if anything else.

“He’s right, Zel.” Eponine agreed. “But I have an idea.”

Half an hour later, the Thenardier sisters embarked on the Titanic in third class, as Azelma and Po-- brother and sister.

 

***

 

Out the window, Cosette could still see the hustle and bustle on the streets below, and in fact it had only increased in size. Everyone was itching to get a look at the great ship sailing away, and Cosette knew she should feel lucky to be on it. And yet she wasn’t. In her cabin, servants poured in carrying her mother’s and Cal’s bags as well as their personal items such as portraits, vases, rugs, and paintings. Cosette loved her paintings more than anything, they gave her a taste of life outside what she knew.

“I don’t understand why you adore these pieces.” Caledon grimaced. “Their subjects are unsightly.”

“It’s not always about the subject, darling. It’s the  _ emotion _ . Art is more than just pretty things, it’s meant to encapsulate the world and the people around us.” She mused.

“What a statement to make coming from a ‘pretty thing’ such as yourself. Perhaps the only work of art we can agree on is one when you are the subject, hm?” Cal said, wrapping his arms around Cosette.

“Perhaps.”

“Will you join me on the deck to see the ship off?”

“In a few minutes. I want to take in everything.”

“Well. I shall see you in a few moments then. Don’t be too long.” Cal walked out of the cabin, shutting the door behind him, and almost as soon as she was alone, Cosette collapsed and began to cry. Cry for herself, cry for her reality, and cry for her future. Life was grains of sand slipping through her fingers, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

She rose from where she sat by the window and moved to look at her beloved paintings. They were her escape. In the brush strokes she ran free, in the colours she found her voice. With a gentle finger Cosette outlined Monet’s water lilies, admiring how though each hue was distinct, it blended with the others. It reminded her of people, however different they are they still come together. She wondered what picture she would make.

Realizing time had flown by, Cosette quickly hurried out of the cabin to the deck and found Cal and her mother waiting for her.

“Whatever took you so long?” Cal muttered beneath a smile.

“I’m sorry. I was just thinking.”

“Thinking can be dangerous, Cosette.” Her mother chimed.

“Yes, I’d hate to use it as a weapon someday.” Mary frowned at this, but a part of Cosette was pleased on the inside. She could never oppose her mother openly, and in moments like these Cosette felt power she feared she had lost. She felt in control for just a few seconds.

“Now, enough of this squabble. The show is about to begin.” Cal pointed up towards the helm where the captain now stood. Captain Smith waved at the people on the deck then to those on the ground below. Without saying a single word, he saluted, and his crew hurried off to give orders to down below. A few seconds later, all passengers aboard felt the ship rumble to life, her engines creating a vibration throughout the vessel almost heartbeat-like. Slowly, the Titanic began to move away from the harbour. The smooth water underneath her mass parted gracefully, and the ship began to glide like an angel through the Atlantic water. Everyone was waving goodbye, shouting farewells with joyful laughs. The ship of dreams was sailing away, with more than two thousand people aboard. It was a sight to behold, it was a spark that would light a million fires. It was the beginning to a tragic end.


End file.
